Boiling Point: Film Review
I already knew being a chef was stressful business thanks to reality TV shows but director Philip Barantini really drives that home with Boiling Point.
The film is shot in a single take and follows the staff of a Dalston restaurant on a very busy and overbooked Friday evening. It particularly focuses on head chef Andy (Stephen Graham) who is dealing with a lot of personal issues and is unable to leave them at home, so his head isn’t in the game when his job demands full concentration. It’s a case of everything that can go wrong, will go wrong, with challenges including a food hygiene inspector, a food critic, a famous chef and a customer with an allergy.
This is an intense, stress-inducing watch. I swear I held my breath during certain scenes and my body had a visceral reaction to the chaos onscreen. The single-take device really ramps up the sense of urgency and relentlessness as there is no letup from the non-stop s**tshow and all the shouting and swearing between the staff.
Barantini applies the quote “leave them wanting more” here. I wasn’t thrilled by where it stopped – it’s shocking and it leaves you thinking but I would have liked another 10-15 minutes to wrap up various plot threads. It leaves some issues up in the air that I wish were more resolved or explored further.
The film made me feel really sorry for workers in the service industry as customers are awful! I felt most sorry for sous chef Carly (Vinette Robinson), who is holding down the fort and keeping the kitchen running while Andy deals with his problems. I felt her frustration; she is thoroughly fed up with being underappreciated and treated like crap when she’s working her ass off. She manages to stay calm and collected when she needs to focus on a dish or sort out a problem but she is feisty, stands up for herself and won’t take any nonsense.
I knew Graham could be relied on to deliver the goods and he certainly does. He is terrific at portraying someone who is on autopilot, not really present and being thrust from one problem to another without the mental capacity to handle it.
Boiling Point whips along at only 96 minutes and leaves you wanting more. Highly recommend.
In cinemas from Friday 7th January